Moshi Moshi and Sick Food

Cousin had a Groupon for Moshi Moshi. Nice place for a date, but ambient noise volume is higher than I'd prefer. They have a fake cherry tree in the middle covered in lights inside, so it's nice to look at.

Takoyaki with jiggly bonito flakes! I like how bonito kind of moves around from the steam of the food underneath it. They weren't really jiggly. That's weird.

Kalbi beef and chirashi!

With edamame.

Work out buddy made soup for dinner because I've had a cold. Cabbage STEWP!

And bread with butter and brie! YUMYUM!

Learned that cabbage = gassy and Beano recently had a recall because the manufacturer might have had some cross contamination with a prescription drug. And that folks, is how I learned that opiates slow down your GI tract. So in my mind the combo with Beano = kaboom.

Ji Cheong Fen & Observations

First, and foremost: why the heck can't I get this in Seattle??

Had to buy fresh ones from MD, freeze and bring them back over. They even have them in Phoenix, AZ and our Chinese food is better than Phoenix!

Before you guys go Comment crazy, the stores out here don't have the dried shrimp in it. Just the green onions. Or just plain. If you find a store that sells otherwise then please let me know!

Yes, I checked Ranch 99, HT Market, and 2 different Uwajimaya's.

2) About the actual food: it's rice noodle with chopped green onions and dried shrimp rolled up in it. You can heat it up in the microwave for 90 seconds and pour sesame oil and dark soy sauce (not light!) Best breakfast ever.

Also, my Dad has a song for it to the music of "Sweet Caroline." Replace "Sweet" with "Ji." "Caroline" with "Cheong Fen." It will be stuck in your head for days like it has been in mine.

3) I don't get carded at liquor stores anymore. This is depressing not because I'm ashamed of my age or anything silly like that, but because the law says card until they look over 35. That is not my age.

4) Dill is quickly becoming one of my favorite herbs. Good in bloody marys, corn salad, and deviled eggs! I made the turkey bacon jalapeno deviled eggs the other day. DELICIOUS.

5) Ever since that new liquor law passed I am having a more difficult time finding the wines I like. Boo. Field trip to Wine World might be in order since these wines aren't local.

***Done, and done! Smash wanted to go there because Wine Spectator came out with this (it's a pdf). She, as the good Washingtonian, went off the list and got local. I ran around the store dancing to the 80's music and decided to try these:

Vino Verde- Casal Garcia 2011; Syrah - Toasted Goat 2009; Monastrell - M3 2006; Nebbiolo D'Alba - Damilano Marghe 2009

Vinho verde is a type of wine P&M brought to my housewarming and it's delicious and cheap! (Working on finding a good brand). This one's bottle says its supposed to be a young wine, so the 1939 is not the bottle's age.

Toasted Goat Syrah - local! Yes, I got it because of the picture, but I did check with a consultant before purchasing to see if it was good! I also keep mixing up the name and think it's called "Tainted Goat," but that might be because I kept looking at the red wines instead of white.

Monastrell- I have no idea what kind of wine this is. Got it because it's from la Mancha and I'm reading Don Quixote.

Nebbiolo!! My favorite wine since trying it at la Spiga. Wine World guy said Nebbiolos are like Barolos (close to each other in region), but are cheaper because they aren't actually from Barolo. There are also different types of Nebbiolos, but again... can't absorb that much information in all the talking. Also I wanted to dance to the music playing.

Also was able to find these:

Cabernet Sauvign0n - Efeste 2008; Tempranillo - Radio Boca 2009

Um. no more adventures in html. I tried to rotate the image 90 degrees, and half my post got turned into code. So if this is an especially ugly post after I hit "publish," then I'm sorry.

Efeste is a local winery in Woodinville that is not on the passport tour, so people tend to skip it. It has a great space and there's a big fluffy dog! He's not allowed in the food area, but if there's not a lot of people sometimes the owners will let you go in the back and play!

These are not economical wines, but they are very good. My brother and sister-in-law joined their wine club.

Radio Boca was introduced to me by HMS (who is awesome at finding yummy economical wines). Wine World has been the only place I can find it.

6) Greenwood Market is closing - and this makes my wine efforts even more complicated. They always had Cycles Gladiator and interesting cheap wines to try. Even Wine World and Fred Meyer couldn't always match their mini selection. I will miss you Greenwood Market!

Something Something Resolutions?

Back in Seattle and pit stopped in the ID (international district) for bun bo hue at a place on 12th and Jackson. Don't remember the name of the place, but it's in the plaza with 7 star (you can get hot pot there!) Lower level of the complex second from the left in the middle.

Got home, and my fridge looked like this:

So for breakfast I dug in my freezer and found bread! Got new biscuit cutters so I got to try making eggs in a basket (which I've always wanted to do, but never had the proper cutting implements to do so). Ok, I have knives, but not the attention span to try to cut a pretty circle out of bread.

I like to tell myself it's healthier that I used olive oil instead of butter to toast the bread. Sure, we'll call it that.

Started an exercise program with some friends. One night they made dinner!

Shrimp salad with snow peas, green onions, bell peppers, and a miso dressing.

Oh is that a tomato? Maybe there was tomato too. There was also grilled miso fish!

Healthier start yay! Except I keep blogging instead of exercising like I'm supposed to. Yay!

Out and About DC Metropolitan Style

I love going back to MD, because I get to see old friends, and they've always got interesting places to see and eat at!

First up, Poetry Night at Busboys and Poets. Normally links in this blog are direct lines to the menu. But you should check out the establishment's main website. It's combination bookstore-restaurant, and it's where Langston Hughes used to work! Could there be more appropriate places to go to a poetry night?

Did I mention I got crab cakes? SO MUCH MEAT!

For Smash- my bites consisted of crab cake, some veggies, sauce, and the grits. Every single bite, yes. It just wasn't the same without all 4 components!

My friend from high school got up and performed a piece, and we got to hear from her friend who performed by the host's request! I loved the broad range of topics and presentation styles, and am so proud of my friend for getting up there!

Later in the week I met with another friend. His wife had to work so we dropped her off at work and went to Eggspectation nearby.

Half Boca Raton benedict, and half Smoked Salmon. I was too indecisive. I meant the other half to be the California benedict.

They're all so good! I was surprised that it's such a large chain, but apparently it's only an East Coast chain. Both for the U.S., Canada, and I bet you for India (I didn't look extensively at where their Indian locations were. I just wanted to see if there were any near me!) Answer is no.

Went down to VA to watch the Alamo bowl with nephew & Co. (To be honest, he was well in bed before the game started, but I can pretend he was cheering in his dreams).

We had sandwiches from one cousin's local favorites, ....[insert name & link here]. I got a pastrami sandwhich on rye with lettuce, dijon, tomatoes and a side of HORSERADISH - WHAT!

I stopped expanding my pictures. It just makes them blurry and less yummy looking. Move your face closer to the screen.

They had pretzel chips. I put them in the sandwich.

It was as good as it looks.

XMAS - Dad in charge of the kitchen!!!

At Thanksgiving Dad turned to my uncle and said, "I want to make prime rib for Christmas dinner. Any advice?" Uncle said, "Go to a butcher shop and have them season and prep it for you. So all you have to do is cook it and you get ribs left over for later eating!" He got into more detail of what you can do with the ribs, and the food coma set in, so Dad said I was in charge of remembering how to cook Christmas dinner.

December comes. Dad says "So you're cooking Christmas dinner, right?"

"What? All he said was, go to the butcher shop. Ask them to prep everything for you. Cook. Done. Right?"

Uncle and I sent Dad recipes.

Dad: "I think I want to prepare the meat the way it says in this recipe, but cook it the other way. Will that work?"

"No. The second way cooks faster because it's a different cut of meat."

Dad: "......ooooookaaaaaaay." *defeated tone*

Christmas Day- Mom steals the oven and makes her ribs. Dad preps the prime rib:

He doesn't like mustard, so he didn't follow the recipe completely. He substituted with other seasoning I bought from Colorado. Also, lots of garlic.

12pm: "Dad, if people are coming over to eat dinner at 3, shouldn't you be cooking the meat by now?"

Dad: "No, why? It says 2.5 hrs for every 5 lbs. That's 3 hours."

"How many lbs is the prime rib?"

Dad: "8 - 10? IIIIII don't knoooooowwwww."

********We had to send Mom elsewhere in the house, because she had already been stressed throughout the day about this. Luckily, we had the NJ clan (who are EXCELLENT cooks) to help with dessert and side dishes. To be honest, they did most of the work. I just moved stuff around.*********

Timing turned out to be JUUUUUST fine. Our guests got sucked into learning how to play Mah Jong, so we had dinner after 4pm.

Eh? Not too shabby for scary Dad comments, right?

The perfect medium rare.... mmmm. No horseradish. Sorry.

NJ Crew + Cousin + Myself made mushrooms and green beans with sage, mashed potatoes, boiled sweet potatoes, gluten free pumpkin/cornbread, and kale salad.

Mom's ribs!!! They are famous and she'll always try to get you to take some home with you.

Corn bread and kale. (Turns out, there's Asian kale. It does NOT cook the same way non-Asian kale cooks. It was.... bitter).

I made Mar's pumpkin walnut crunch cake:

Alternately, we had Maria's bakery Asian cakes! (Apparently quite a few family members don't like pumpkin. Every day's a school day!)

These are a few of my favorite things! Part III

The last go-to restaurant is A&J. Admittedly, the dumplings at Din Tai Fung 鼎泰豐are better, but I just haven't been impressed with their side dishes. These are what I REALLY miss:

What's that? Close up pictures? Ok, if you insist. Starting from the top left:

Um... I don't know what this is. I think it's beef tendon, but the only beef tendon on the menu has garlic. Don't recall heartburn, so .... ????

Tofu rolls with assorted mushrooms -#5206.

Most of these side dishes are cold. This one has a slight sweet soy sauce flavor. Usually known as what I call, "cow fu." Which is also the term for your uncle from your mother's side. The parental generation insists that what I call the food is incorrect, but when I ask them to repeat the name it sounds EXACTLY the same to me. SO..... oh well. I'll worry about it more once I've learned the Cantonese tones. (Even though this is Mandarin-style dim sum).

Sliced pork ears with spicy seasongs -#5205.

I don't always get this, but once in a blue moon I crave it. Kind of the satisfaction you get from eating jerky. Not at all like jerky.

Bean curd with 1000 year old egg -#5201.

My uncle used to love this type of egg (can't eat it much anymore for health reasons). First time eating this was in middle school with them. My parents don't actually like it, so I was mostly on my own with this dish. The sesame oil is different from what my aunt makes, and is great!!!

This place also makes the best smoked chicken ever, and this salad thing which you think you find in Asian grocery stores, but it's salty and is crap!

Except when you get the salad thing at A&J. Then it's freaking awesome.

Bean curd skin with soybeans and mustard greens -#5207.

Mom said what ruins it in the grocery stores is the preservatives they have to use to get it there in the first place. I've seen it in the pre-made food sections (where you might find the korean style sushi rolls or kimchi) and even in cans.

The pre-made section stuff is horrible and is supposedly made "fresh," so I fear and avoid trying the canned kind. I guess it's the magic of A&J. Just like how they make this:

Szechuan spicy beef and tendon noodle soup -#1110.

Again, not so great elsewhere, but here there's that special ingredient of yum. And yes, you bet your butt those are hand-pulled noodles. Want to see it again?

You're welcome.

The following will probably horrify those of you who are familiar with this cuisine. I only assume so because it upsets my parents everytime they watch me do this. (Don't worry, they'll be desensitized eventually. Just like they are now when I put egg noodles in my congee or put vinegar in).

The broth is so good I use it as sauce for everything else. Not pictured is jiaozi (we didn't get any this time but it usually is the big sidewise kind - so over stuffed it's more like a taco instead of a dumpling). I also dip scallion pancakes!

Mom: "What are you doing?! You ruin the pancake - it's not going to be crispy anymore!"

Ah, but you gain all that FLAVOR! And if you time it right you still get some crispy. Muahahaha. Also she doesn't like soup noodles, so pfth on that. She's biased.

Ironically, the xiao long bao #4202, is probably my least favorite here. I know I know, it's my favorite dumpling. Raved about it in previous posts, etc. But lately what they've served here the dumpling skin is thick and there's hardly any broth. Those are the parts of the dumpling that make it so unique!

Still good with the noodle soup broth though. That's right. Even the dumpling gets dipped.

These are a few of my favorite things! Part II

While I've been slowly collecting my go-to Chinese restaurants in Seattle, they still don't hold a candle to the Chinese food you can get in the DC area. Besides Full Key (in part I) the family hit up my parents' weekly dim sum place, Silver Fountain. One of my favorites is gao choi gao (no pic, sorry). It's a steamed dumpling that's then pan fried at Silver Fountain.

***Can we pause for a second? What the heck is Wikia and why does it have a dim sum page!?!?! Cousin - you need to click on the Wikia home page. Love the picture, you will. I now know what Wikia is, you should learn what it is too. Also, maybe explore the dim sum page some more. /***unpause***

Oh and the steamed beef balls! Most people call them "meatballs" but there's other versions made from other types of meat, like shrimp. For some reason when I have it out here it tastes old and re-heated. Maybe because I'm not part of the "in-crowd" --> a status my parents earn through their weekly patronage to this restaurant. So they get good seats during crowded times and therefore avoid most of the reheated leftovers that come out.

My parents are actually building up good repertoire at Maria's Bakery. Did you know that besides baked goods they also serve this:

Macaroni noodles with peas, carrots, and ham in chicken broth. Eggs and a hot dog. Simple, delicious, and I don't know why this is what transferred from the British culture to the English. I actually make the soup when I feel sick and add bok choy and mushrooms. What can I say? I like my soups more complicated and with vegetables.

1000 year old egg and salty pork congee, lo mein, English toast with butter, condensed milk, and peanut butter. ALSO! Ying-yeung. (That's Cantonese for Ying-yang). It's black tea and coffee with milk.

I didn't! It's Hong Kong style breakfast. They usually come in "sets." My cousins and I, of course ordered both sets and just split them all. The tea and toast are all included in your sets.

The peanut butter toast stood out the most. The toast is thicker than normal bread, and I completely forgot that they do that!!!! (sometimes you just get condensed milk, no pb). Next mission is to find a place that makes this stuff. It's not the same when you make it yourself. Believe me, I've tried. It's that whole some things taste better when some one else makes it for you deal.